A number of the Angels’ young players will be playing winter ball this season. The main place to keep your eye on will be the Estrellas team in the Dominican Republic, run by Angels coach Alfredo Griffin.

Willits will be trying to recoup the at-bats he lost by spending most of the summer buried on the Angels’ bench. He hit just .194 in 82 games (and 108 at-bats) this season — a big step back after hitting .293 in 136 games the year before. A good showing in winter ball will re-establish his credentials as an every-day option in the majors (if not for the Angels, then for some other team.)

But Wood will be the most important one to watch. Steady playing time in a highly-competitive winter league will be a good test of whether his second-half surge in Triple-A this summer really did signal his readiness for a major-league job.

With Chone Figgins eligible for salary arbitration this winter and other contract decisions to be made, one option the Angels will have to consider is making Wood their third baseman in 2009 and the further options that would create — freeing up money by not re-signing Figgins, creating a trade chip in Figgins or moving the versatile Figgins elsewhere (left field?).

But first they have to be convinced Wood is ready to produce at the major-league level.

Don’t underestimate the value of the winter-ball proving grounds — for good and bad. This is where Ervin Santana regained his confidence, leading to his rebirth for the Angels in 2008. It’s also where Juan Rivera was lost to them for the 2007 season (after he broke his leg playing winter ball).

Elsewhere in the Dominican Republic, infielder Sean Rodriguez and Kendry Morales (Francisco) and minor-league Adam Pavkovich (Licey) will also be playing.